The Department of Defense has announced the loss of Lance Cpl. Eugene C. Mills III, 21, of Laurel, Md.
Eugene C. Mills III grew up in Laurel, Maryland. Because his father's name is also Gene, his neighbors often called him "Little Gene." They remember him becoming tall and handsome, one saying that he
"looked like a GQ model."
But good looks wasn't really what set Gene apart. He was both polite and kind, the sort of young man who peppered his speech to elders with "sir" and "ma'am," but also the sort of young man who ran to assist a neighbor on crutches when that neighbor returned from the grocery store. That gentlemen, Frank Mancini, said of Eugene
“He put forth all his effort to be the best he could be.”
After graduating from Atholton High School, Gene chose to serve our nation by joining the Marine Corps. He began his first tour of duty in Afghanistan in 2010. He was a on his second tour there, serving as a Lance Corporal in Helmand Province, when he was lost. He was only 21.
Eugene C. Mills III is remembered, mourned, and loved by his mother Theresa, his father Gene, and family, friends, and neighbors throughout Laurel and the world.
Merciful and compassionate God,
we bring you our grief in the loss of Eugene C. Mills III
and ask for courage to bear it.
--New Zealand Prayer Book
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Material for this memorials from, among others, the Washington Post, and Freedom Remembered, and WBFF, and Maryland Community News Online
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About the IGTNT Series
"I Got the News Today" is a diary series intended to honor, respect, and remind us of the sacrifice of our U.S. troops. Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by monkeybiz, noweasels, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Janos Nation, True Blue Majority, Proud Mom and Grandma, Sandy on Signal, CalNM, Ms Wings, maggiejean, racheltracks, ccasas, JaxDem, Ekaterin, TheFatLadySings, and Wide Awake in Kentucky. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but are an important service to those who have died, and show our community’s respect for them.
Fallen service members whose names have been released by the US Department of Defense will usually be diaried two days after the official announcement on the DoD website. This allows the IGTNT team to cover each person more fully, but still in a timely manner.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members mentioned here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.